At first, he thought it was just a passing shower, something that would blow over quickly. But judging by the way the rain was now pouring down, it didn’t seem like it would stop anytime soon.
Kang-woo looked around before his gaze settled on the narrow staircase leading underground. Of all places, why had he come here? Even as he blamed himself, it felt oddly familiar—perhaps because this was already his second visit.
Hesitation filled his eyes. But even if he turned back, it wasn’t as if he had anywhere to go. He briefly considered spending the night at a motel or a bathhouse, yet after what had just happened earlier, he simply couldn’t muster the courage.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. At the very least, he might as well go down and see.
Having made up his mind, Kang-woo slowly stepped down the stairs. The soles of his sneakers, soaked through with water, squeaked noisily as they rubbed against the floor.
Despite the late hour, the shop was fortunately still lit. Kang-woo hesitated for a long while even in front of the door. Was this really the right decision? But no matter how much he thought about it, there was no answer. He didn’t have anywhere else to go right now.
The hand that had been wavering soon seemed to make up its mind and firmly grabbed the handle.
“Excuse me.”
As he opened the door with a timid greeting, the bell above his head rang with a jingle. Kang-woo peeked his head through the narrow opening.
In stark contrast to the outside, warm air wrapped around his body. Unable to resist the sweet temptation of that warmth, Kang-woo eventually stepped fully into the shop.
The door closed behind him. Standing at the entrance, Kang-woo looked around the neat interior. It was quiet, as if there were no customers in the shop. Then again, at this late hour, there wouldn’t be any customers anyway. In fact, it was surprising the lights were still on at all.
“Who—”
Pulling back a curtain, a man appeared—large, like some massive beast.
Kang-woo’s shoulders tensed. Just like last time, the fearsome goblin tattoo drawn across the man’s forearm greeted the stranger. Even in the chilly weather, he was wearing nothing but a short-sleeved T-shirt, as though he had no sense of the seasons.
When he had left home earlier, Kang-woo never imagined that he would end up coming to see this intimidating man. He had simply walked wherever his heart led him, wherever his feet carried him—and somehow, strangely, he ended up here.
The man also seemed to pause when he noticed Kang-woo standing stiffly in place. Soon his gaze moved slowly over Kang-woo’s entire body, drenched from the rain. The dark eyes that traveled unabashedly over him made the muscles along Kang-woo’s spine tighten on their own.
“Hello.”
Kang-woo bowed politely first.
But the man gave no response. He simply stared at Kang-woo with a quiet gaze.
“……”
“……”
The silence gradually stretched longer. Kang-woo moistened his dry lips with his tongue. He could feel the inside of his mouth going parched from anxiety.
He knew that, to this man, he was nothing more than a stranger he had met for the first time a few days ago.
And he also knew he was probably not a welcome visitor.
“Um…”
But he couldn’t back down here. After hesitating, Kang-woo clutched the straps of his bag tightly with both hands and spoke.
“Could you… let me stay here just for one night?”
***
Jun-seo hummed to himself as he walked along the familiar road.
This street, often called the Street of Youth, was always lively no matter when you came. Not only was it packed with people, but it was also a place where top-tier fashionistas and hipsters gathered, so young men and women dressed in all kinds of outfits passed by constantly. Countless people with strikingly distinct styles roamed the street, enough to make one’s eyes dizzy.
When he first came here, Jun-seo couldn’t shake the thought that Seok-ho had set up shop in a place that suited him perfectly. This free-spirited alley was the ideal place for someone like him who hated being tied down.
Passing the main road and heading deeper in, a maze-like alley appeared. Jun-seo entered the uphill path, walked a bit, then turned to the right. Then he stepped into a low building standing just ahead.
As he went down the stairs, a small shop with a large neon sign reading TATTOO SHOP hanging on the wall came into view.
Without much thought, he reached toward the translucent glass door—but before his hand even touched it, the door swung open.
“Oh—!”
He almost collided with someone coming out from the other side. Though he let out a loud exclamation, his quick reflexes saved him from smashing his face into the solid, bulky body in front of him.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
The apology came not from the person who had almost collided with him, but from a third party.
Jun-seo, who had been about to say it was fine, closed his mouth instead.
Because the people apologizing were far too familiar.
Baek Kyung-wook and Kim Kang-woo.
He hadn’t expected to run into the two of them here. Of course, they didn’t seem to realize at all that he attended the same high school as them.
The two paid Jun-seo no attention whatsoever. Jun-seo craned his neck, watching Kang-woo’s back as he hurriedly disappeared beyond the building entrance after Kyung-wook.
“Wow, that bastard’s seriously relentless. Calling the kid out and bullying him even on the weekend.”
Jun-seo shuddered as he recalled the chilling look Baek Kyung-wook had shot him for a split second earlier. Judging by the strong pheromone scent lingering in the air, something unpleasant had clearly happened inside.
And the person who had probably provoked Kyung-wook’s temper was—
“Why are you talking to yourself over there?”
“Ah! You scared me.”
Startled, Jun-seo spun around. This guy was definitely no saint either.
Standing by the door was Seok-ho, the most likely culprit, who had apparently come out at some point without Jun-seo noticing.
It looked like he had come out for a smoke—there was a lighter and a pack of cigarettes in his hand. Jun-seo immediately brightened and waved at him.
“Hyung, long time no see.”
“We saw each other two weeks ago. What do you mean long time?”
“Ah, that doesn’t count. That time was just a brief moment at my eldest aunt’s husband’s birthday party. And you left in less than an hour saying you were busy, so we barely even greeted each other. I refuse to count that as seeing you.”
After complaining, Jun-seo quickly changed the subject.
“Anyway, those two who just left—did they come to talk to you?”
Seok-ho had expected Jun-seo to ramble about the birthday party for at least thirty minutes, so his sudden shift surprised him—but only briefly.
“Why did they come? Did they get tattoos? What kind? Who did it? Both of them? Or the taller one? By the way, hyung, you do know they’re both minors, right?”
Jun-seo fired questions at him in rapid succession, enough to leave someone dazed. His eyes shone with intense curiosity.
Seok-ho, who couldn’t care less about satisfying someone else’s curiosity, looked at him with a dry gaze.
“Are you listening to me? I’m asking if you know they’re minors.”
The impatient Jun-seo pressed for an answer. Only then did Seok-ho give a small nod.
“I know.”
“Wow, but you accepted them as customers? Hyung, I’m seriously disappointed. So if there’s money in it, you’ll even take minors? Huh? Isn’t that illegal?”
Jun-seo spoke excitedly, like someone who had just found a perfect opportunity to nitpick.
“When I asked you to do a tiny one behind my ear, you flat-out refused because I was a minor. But I guess for other people, if there’s money involved, you’ll do anything?”
“Shut up. You’re loud. Close your mouth before I shove this cigarette pack in it.”
Looking thoroughly annoyed, Seok-ho climbed the stairs. Jun-seo followed right behind him, chattering nonstop.
“Who were those kids earlier? What did they do here? Why won’t you tell me? I’m seriously curious.”
Jun-seo had even started whining now, clinging to Seok-ho like glue.
Stopping at the parking lot beside the building, Seok-ho ignored him, lit a cigarette, and held it between his teeth.
“Why are you so curious?”
It was just a single response after so much pestering. In truth, it was a question he asked without much thought.
But the moment the words left his mouth, Seok-ho realized his mistake.
“Well, you see—”
Because a strange excitement gleamed in Jun-seo’s eyes.
“Hyung, you saw that pretty-faced guy among the ones who came earlier, right?”
Jun-seo began enthusiastically.
A pretty-faced guy.
Someone immediately came to mind, but Seok-ho knew that if he nodded, the situation would only become more troublesome. So he denied it outright.
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know? You’ve got two perfectly good eyes, don’t you? How could you not notice? You know—the shorter one out of the two who came together.”
Jun-seo added the explanation helpfully, but Seok-ho kept an indifferent expression.
One mistake was enough. If he responded any further, Jun-seo’s chatter would never end.
Even though Seok-ho didn’t offer a single word of encouragement, the nonstop chatter unfortunately didn’t stop.
“His name is Kim Kang-woo. He’s kind of famous at our school. His family’s well-off, he’s good-looking, and he’s smart too.”
Raising his index finger, Jun-seo tapped his own temple.
Then, as if proudly listing the virtues of his own family member, he continued,
“In other words, he’s an all-rounder. From head to toe, there’s nothing lacking about the guy.”
Honestly, Seok-ho found Jun-seo fascinating in a strange way. Why was everyone in this family so interested in other people’s business? Was it genetic?
Just as he was thinking that, Jun-seo suddenly changed the subject.
“And the big guy who came with Kim Kang-woo—didn’t you feel anything from him?”
Jun-seo stared at Seok-ho with a meaningful look. It was obvious he was hoping for a very specific answer.
But Seok-ho simply looked back at him without saying anything.
Naturally, Jun-seo was the one who lost patience first. Reaching the limit of his endurance, he added a hint.
“I mean, didn’t you feel anything? Like some kind of special aura.”
Seok-ho let out an openly irritated sigh.
But Jun-seo’s pressing gaze didn’t let up. Knowing he wouldn’t be satisfied unless he got some kind of answer, Seok-ho reluctantly searched his memory.
The guy who had come with Kim Kang-woo.
Seok-ho tried recalling whether there had been anything remarkable about him, but nothing in particular came to mind.
They hadn’t even been in the same space for very long. If there was anything he could conclude from that brief moment, it was simply this—
For someone so young, the brat had been ridiculously arrogant.
“Nothing.”
At Seok-ho’s half-hearted answer, Jun-seo narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.
“Hm. Hyung, you really are strange. You’re a Beta, but not quite like a Beta. Or maybe you’ve just completely lost the concept of fear.”
Muttering something that sounded somewhere between an insult and a compliment, Jun-seo continued.
“That guy’s a dominant Alpha with pheromones so strong that even Betas can feel them.”
So what?
After all that buildup, the reason wasn’t even anything special. Dominant Alpha, pheromones—none of it had anything to do with him.
Seok-ho looked at Jun-seo indifferently. For a while, they stared at each other in meaningless silence.
Taking a deep drag from his cigarette, Seok-ho held it between his index and middle fingers and exhaled.
The smoke blew straight into Jun-seo’s face, making him cough violently.
“Ugh—cigarette smoke! Have some manners, seriously.”
“If you don’t like it, get out of my sight. And stop yapping so loudly.”
